Modi unveils mega food park in Karnataka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday commissioned an integrated India Food Park in Karnataka.

The 110-acre mega facility is situated in Koravahalli village of Tumkur district, about 90 km from Bangalore.

Set up by the Mumbai-based FMCG major Future Group and touted to be the country's first, it integrates the entire food value chain from farm to plate at one location.

Built at a cost of Rs.140-crore by Future Consumer Enterprises Ltd., with a Rs.50-crore investment from the food processing industries ministry, the swanky park has cold chain infrastructure, pulping and IQF (individual quick freezing) lines, spiral freezers, mechanised sorting facilities and quality testing centres.

"The park has the capacity to process 4.5 million metric tonnes of foodgrains, cereals, vegetables, fruits and other farm products per annum. It has enough space to store rice, spice flour mills, grain silos and warehouses," Future Group chief executive Kishore Biyani said on the occasion.

About 7,500-square metres of space in the sprawling park has been earmarked for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) entrepreneurs and food producers, research and development (R&D) centres, a plug-and-play facility and packaging units.

"The ambitious project has the potential to benefit thousands of farmers, directly employ about 10,000 people and quadruple the value of food products processed in the park," Biyani asserted.

The state government, which allocated the land through its nodal agency Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB), is supporting the project by supplying 500 kilo litres of water and 7 megawatt of power daily.

On completion of the project over the next two years, with an additional investment of Rs.120 crore by the company, the park will have 50 units for food processing and dedicated plants to produce savouries and snacks, frozen food products, pickles, pasta, dry fruits and nuts, chocolates and other edible items.

"The world class park will enhance our ability to drive innovation and product development in food products and create a captive production capacity for our brands," Biyani pointed out.

It will also help stakeholders to reduce supply chain costs, wastage in the food value chain, improve quality and hygiene to create food products that compare with the best in the world.

Products developed or processed at the park will be retailed through the group's retail formats such as Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar, Foodhall, KB's Fairprice, Big Apple and Aadhaar as well as through general trade and other retailers.

Collection centres for procuring agri-produce are being set up at Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Doddaballapur, Chamarajanagar, Chikmagalur and Shimoga across the state to enable farmers to sell their produce to the units operating in the park.

The group sources about 150,000 tonnes of farm produce from 52 centres across the country and offers a range of food and FMCG products through its various brands.

Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah were present on the occasion.